Norsemen
The Norsemen are a race of Giants living on the coasts of the Northern Sea. They are notorious for they raids of the Ostpfalz region that started around the year 600, peaked around 1100 and continued until 1200. Society Social Ranks Norsemen live in large clans. In the society there are three ranks, the slaves, the free men and the thengs. *Slaves have no rights and take care of every menial task, yet they are still considered men. This means that their masters are not allowed to mistreat or kill them and such action are punished, as if they were performed against free men. An intersting point is that slave have to accept this situation for themselves, usually though the alternative is death. *Free men are either freed slaves and their children, or men who have lost their lands or herds (possibly due to war). They are obliged to have an axe and shield and have their own houses and families. *Thengs are the core of the Norse society. They usually carry swords and most of them own a ship, with a crew of free men. One or a few Thengs from each are become Jarls. Those are the leaders of the clans and are either elected, or come to their rank by force. Berserks A single exception to the rule of the ranks are the Berserks. The Berserks are warrior who enter a bloodthirsty fit while fighting. In the past the Berserks were hired by Thengs and employed in combat, but the practice has now declined. The remaining Berserks are considered outcasts in the societies, and survive either as hermit, loosely attached to some local village, or as travelling rogues, bullying villages for food and beer. Structure Each clan lives in an allocated area where each family holds a piece of land known as farmstead (Bæ). In this land the families keep their livestock and built their worlshops. Each clan retains a central, walled off area, usually upon a hill, where the central Hall is built by the same wood they use for their ships. This whole area is known as the clan's Hall Fort (Sal). The men are masters of the ships, the herds and the Hall, while the women have absolute power over the rest of the farmstead, the houses, the servants and slaves. This division is based on what Norsemen call the Old Rule, which states that "Everything living is ruled by men, All possesions are ruled by women". In this context, the central Hall of the clan and the Ships are considered living, while the slaves are considered possesions. All the clans of an axtensive area, send their Thengs to the local Thing, where decisions of importance are made, and differences among Thengs, freemen, or even slaves, are resolved. The Thing is the centre of every decision and action taken by the clan of area, but it cannot alter laws, or validate exchange of lands or ships among men. Possible raids, or exploration journeys, even trading cannot be performed without a decision from the Thing. Twice a year, the Jarls from all the Things are gathered at the Althing, a central gathering where laws are decided upon, and serious cases discussed. The Althing is traditionaly held at the great hall of Halfstead. Religion Norsemen have no gods in the regular sense. They do not pray for guidance. They believe in the existence of a court, much like their own Halls, populated by ancient giants known as the Nithar. The Nithar live in their great Hall, across a rainbow bridge. This is the place were slain warriors go. There they fight all day and drink all night, until the end of world, when they will rise again to fight the Beasts and Demons of the early days, that will awaken to consume the world. The Nithar came from the South following the Giant Humnir until he died, and on his dead skull they raised their Hall. Yearly Schedule Norsemen spend most of what they call the Freezing Season (mid September to mid April) in their courts, taking care of their herds and lands. The rest of the year they call the Raiding Season and they mostly spend it travelling abroad, exploring, raiding and hunting whales. During this time the women are the absolute rulers in the Halls and take care of everything. The Althing is held when the seasons change, there is no set date, depending every year on the weather conditions. Law system, Punishment The Norsemen adhere to a strict law system. The Laws determine everything, from social conduct to the proper way of cinstructing ships and weapons. The Law does not cover oir protect foreigners unless they are considered slaves (another reason for prospective slaves to accept this condition). One sole exception on this rule are the Orcs and the Fir Bolg, which the Norsemen recognise as equal to Freemen under the Law. The Law describes only two kinds of punishment, the strpping of one's rank, making him a Freeman or a slave, and the Blood Eagle execution method. The Blood Eagles will rise as undead and attack any ship on the Northern Sea that does not carry the Raven Banner. Ships and the Undying Wood The Norseman Law considers ships to be living beings. This is not a symbolism, but an actual fact. Many of their Sagas refer to sentient trees, that grow in the forests around the Northern Sea. Those sentient trees are cut and from this living and sentient wood, before it dries out, the Norse ship are constructed. It is a fact that the wood of Norse ships is actually alive, sometimes growing branches and even leaves that have to be pruned, but whether the ships actually show signs of a sentient existence is not certain. Category:The Peoples